In this New Spain, as in all the pagan nations, they held, and onaccount
of our sins still hold, the sun in great veneration,treating it as it were God. The basis which they had for this was
atradition which was current among the Indians: that is, that therewere two worlds or two kinds of people.

In
the first, mankind was transmuted into animals and into the sunand the moon. Thus they attribute a rational soul to the
sun, moon,and animals, speaking to them for their sorceries as if theyunderstood, summoning and invoking them under
other names for theirspells, as will be told at greater length in its proper place. As abasis for the worship of the
sun, they recount a fable of the kindin Ovid's Metamorphoses, which they tell concisely. They say, then,that those
of that era had to transform themselves into the thingsthat they had to be.

In the second, the transformation had
to be in accord with eachone's merits. A huge bonfire was ordered to be made, so thatproviding themselves in it after
it had been well ignited, theymight acquire merit for the said transformation; for it wasestablished law that they
would attain honor and excellence by meansof that fire, and would be superior lords in the second era.

This rumor
and hope of excellence and superiority, and of beingturned into gods, briefly brought together a great number of people,especially
leaders and potentates of that era, ambitious anddesirous of commanding everything—as is usual in such persons,
sinceit seems to them that all are in their debt, no matter howunreasonable this might be.

Once a great number
of leaders and potentates had been gatheredtogether, and the furnace or bonfire well lit for the ordeal, thesaid potentates
began the undertaking, giving preference to thelowly as they always do in similar engagements, even though thesemight
have fewer merits. But in this, as the power of favor andbribery was not in effect, they did not prevail; because while
thedrive of ambition and the desire to rule incited and encouragedthem, fear intimidated them and the danger of the
fire disheartenedthem. And so, seeing that all had arrived at the ordeal, theseremained at the first step, and the
others at the second, while thebravest did not pass the first stair of the furnace. They spentmany hours on these
without anyone daring to enter the fire.

Suddenly there came forth among them all the one then called God—intheir
tongue CENTEOTL ICNOPILTZINTLI which literally means "singleGod, son without a father." [Single God, Orphan/ Tezcatlipoca.Translation,
mine]. This one spoke to a sick person there, who wascovered with pox and sores. He said to him that since he saw whatwas
going on—that in spite of the greatness of the prize, not one ofthose powerful and rich magnates had dared undergo
the ordeal—heshould stand out among them all and take such a great prize fromtheir grasp by entering the fire
before any other. The sick onegave the excuse that those very potentates would not let him getthere, but the god persisted
in talking to him, persuading him torush in among them all and to quickly throw himself into the fire.

At that,
the poor, poxy, sore-covered invalid resolved himself tosuch rigorous ordeal. When he passed towards it among thosepowerful
beings, they stopped him, insulting and reproaching himthat such a base person, sick, poor, and stinking, should dare
anundertaking worthy and fitting only for persons such as they. Butafter stopping him in this way once or twice, the
third time hepassed without them being able to detain him nor even to see himuntil he was at the furnace's mouth,
whence they could not removehim since no one dared go there.

Then the invalid bravely hurled himself into the midst
of thatranging inferno; through its force and flames his entire sicknessand sores were purged and purified, and he
became handsome andshinning and was turned into the sun, which is the most brilliant ofheavenly bodies. This was the
prize of the testing of his soul andsuffering, for which he deserved the said transmutation, and throughwhich he rose
to heaven and was worshipped as God. But as soon ashe left the said furnace purified, he threw himself into a pool ofvery
cold water, which had also been prepared as an ordeal; onleaving it fully cleansed, he passed to heaven where he hid himself.

Seeing
this happen, one of the healthy ones amongst all thatmultitude of people which had assembled for the ordeal, ashamed thata
sick, poxy person (called Nanahuatzin in their tongue) should haveachieved such high honor and distinction among so many,
andirritated by ambition and envy, did what the first had done.Passing boldly through the midst of them all, he hurled
himself intothe furnace. But he found it quenched by the first one's ordeal—bythe fluids and corruption from
which he had escaped—and so he couldnot achieve such purity, even though on leaving the furnace he alsothrew
himself into the said pool of water. But since he could notbe the sun, he was transformed into the moon with less light
thanthe sun—altered because he had found the furnace less hot.Thereupon, he rose to heaven like the sun. [Others
vary in themanner of the conversion or transmutation of this sick one into thesun. They say that a wealthy Eagle came
from heaven, seized him,and carried him off to heaven…. About the second one, who had begunto undergo the same
ordeal, they say that a Jaguar attempted to gethim out of it, but could not, and was marked by having gone into thefire;
that is why it has those yellow and black paintings. And[they say] that the said wise man was burned up and converted
intoashes, and that afterwards the gods carried him off to heaven andconverted him into the moon; that is why the
moon has that ashy orchalky color.]

This accomplished, it only remained for the sun to show itself sothat each
one could fulfill his obligation, honoring as God,sacrificing to it, and making offerings to it. This had to be doneduring
fasts as punishments for the bad outcome of thetransformation, since once all the rest of that people had performedit,
they belonged entirely to the Sun. So as to better himselfthrough the said transformation, each one endeavored to improvehimself
through his offering. All, while fasting, waited for thesun to show itself to them so that they might make sacrifice andoffering
to it.

While they were waiting, the sun showed itself to them in the west,but hid itself so quickly that they had
no time to make an offeringto it. The second time it came up in the South, and what happenedthe first time took place.
The third time it came up in the Northand hid itself as on the two previous occasions. At that, one ofthose ready
for the offering, being tired of fasting and discouragedwith tricks, ate his offering. Afterwards the sun came up in theEast
and continued its course to the West, upon which all thoseready made their offerings and sacrifices. But the one who hadeaten
his offering found himself with nothing to offer. Even thoughhe went to the rest of them, no one would give him anything.
Seeinghimself, then, pressed by necessity and opportunity, and with nochoice in the matter, he looked for something
to offer. He reachednow for stones, now for sticks, and he even wanted to grasp theinsubstantial shadows, but in the
end he found nothing to offer.

On account of this, they say, the sun turned him into a bird calledHuinaxcatl [hungry
sparrow hawk], and condemned him to perpetualhunger for not having fasted, and to grasping empty shadows for nothaving
made an offering. This is confirmed by the fact that thisbird appears by night and is nothing more than feathers and bones,and
always appears to be confused. They say that the sun turned therest who had fasted and made offerings into good animals,
and thatthey would always have something to eat.

On this fabulous history, or perhaps we should say historical
fable,is based most of what the Indians do today in their idolatries tothe sun, carrying offerings to it as soon as
it rises above themountain peaks and hilltops and pools of water.

Secondly, there is the custom of and superstitious
devotion tokeeping a fire in the borning room without removing the fire forfour days in a row, as will be told in
its place at greater length.

Thirdly, there is the use of the number four in all theirsuperstitions and idolatrous
rites, such as during the insufflationswhich the sorcerers and false doctors make when they exorcise orinvoke the
Devil. I could never track down the reason for it untilI heard a story of waiting for the sun. for the same reason thehunters,
when they set out snares to catch deer, shout towards thefour quarters of the world and place four crossed cords on a
rock.The archers call four times to the deer, repeating four times thisword TAHUI ["Hola! Oh!"] which nobody understands
today, and thenshouting four times like a Puma. They place a lighted candle on thegrave for the dead for four successive
days, while others throw apitcher of water on it for four successive days. And finally, thenumber four is venerated
among them.